I went into the archives at the Daily Mirror HQ for a special Academy Awards edition of mystery photos, figuring the Brain Trust would have fun guessing the venue, the year and possibly the mystery person on stage.

[Update: I think nearly everyone identified this as the Music Center at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion. Dewey Webb got the year – but nobody has identified our mystery guest.]

Jack Valente? Very possible, and we all know that it’s the Dorothy Chandler Pavillion at the Music Center, so it has to be pre-1999: if I’m not mistaken, that was the last year the Academy Awards ceremony was held at that venue.

Life-like Oscars with swords — 60th Academy Awards telecast in 1988 from the Shrine Civic Auditorium. Guessing it’s famed academy award winning director Robert Wise we see from behind at the podium, who was President of the Academy that year.

Although it was condemned as one of the worst Academy Awards openings ever, I loved it! I don’t recall the year, but I do remember Rob Lowe serenading Snow White before she rose high in the air atop her ever-growing skirt, out of which stepped Lily Tomlin who quipped, “I told them I wouldn’t do the Oscars unless I had a really great entrance.”